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Game Preview: 10/25/21 vs. Tampa Bay

Posted on October 24, 2021 by | Leave a comment

GAME-DAY RESOURCES

Game Notes NHL Stats Rosters

LAST GAME
Saturday, October 23
Buffalo 1 at New Jersey 2 (OT)
Goals: Cozens
Goalie: Tokarski (37 saves/39 shots)
PP: 1/2; PK: 2/3; Shots: New Jersey 39 – Buffalo 25

CURRENT INJURIES – (Man Games Lost: 20)
Player (injury, first game missed) – total games missed
Mattias Samuelsson (Lower body, Oct. 14; injured reserve) – 5 games
Jack Eichel (Upper body, Oct. 14; injured reserve) – 5 games
Casey Mittelstadt (Upper body Oct. 16; injured reserve) – 4 games
Henri Jokiharju (Lower body Oct. 16; injured reserve) – 4 games
Cody Eakin (Undisclosed) – 2 games

TRANSACTIONS IN PAST 7 DAYS
10/23: Recalled F Brett Murray from Rochester (AHL)

UPCOMING GAMES
Thursday, Oct. 28: Buffalo at Anaheim, 10 p.m.
Sunday, Oct. 31: Buffalo at Los Angeles, 4 p.m.
Tuesday, Nov. 2: Buffalo at San Jose, 10:30 p.m.
Thursday, Nov. 4: Buffalo at Seattle, 10 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 6: Detroit at Buffalo, 7 p.m.

TONIGHT’S GAME
LIGHTNING at SABRES

  • This is the first of three meetings between the Sabres and Lightning this season.
  • Last meeting: Tampa Bay defeated Buffalo 6-4 in Buffalo on Dec. 31, 2019.
  • Next meeting: Tuesday, Jan. 11 in Buffalo
  • The Sabres are 2-7-1 in their last 10 games vs. the Lightning; 2-7-1 at home.
  • This is the 107th game all-time between Buffalo and Tampa Bay; Buffalo has a 55-42-9 series record.
  • The Sabres are 26-21-5 at home against the Lightning all-time.

THIS DATE IN SABRES HISTORY

  • The Sabres are 10-11-3 all-time on October 25.
  • October 25, 1991: The Sabres acquire Pat LaFontaine, Randy Wood and Randy Hillier from the Islanders in exchange for Pierre Turgeon, Uwe Krupp, Dave McLlwain and Benoit Hogue.
  • October 25, 1991: The Sabres get 31 saves from Clint Malarchuk as they top the Sharks 3-1 in the first-ever game between the teams, earning the 800th win in franchise history.

THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW

  • 21 of the last 24 meetings between Buffalo and Tampa Bay have been decided in regulation, including each of the last four contests.
  • Will Butcher has five assists ana a plus-6 rating in eight career games against the Lightning.
  • Among Sabres defensive pairs to have played at least five minutes together this season, Robert Hagg and Mark Pysyk lead Sabres defensive pairs in corsi for percentage (58.52) and expected goals for percentage (63.20).
    • The pair has the lowest offensive zone start percentage among Sabres defensive pairs at just 22.22 percent.
  • Colin Miller has a team-high five assists this season and now has eight assists in his last nine games played dating back to last season.

HOT START

  • Entering play Sunday, the Sabres ranked sixth in the NHL with a 54.7 shot attempts percentage at 5-on-5 this season.
  • Buffalo has 121 scoring chances for and 82 scoring chances against at 5-on-5 through its first five games, good for third in the NHL entering play Sunday with a 59.61 scoring chance for percentage.
  • The team’s 57.25 expected goals percentage at 5-on-5 ranked second in the NHL before Sunday’s game.
  • The Sabres have successfully killed 12 of their 13 penalties to begin the season, tied for seventh in the league with a 85.7 penalty kill percentage this season entering play Sunday.

TERRIFIC TRIO

  • The line of Rasmus Asplund, Victor Olofsson and Tage Thompson has accounted for five goals and eight points for the Sabres this season.
  • According to Natural Stat Trick, at 5-on-5, the trio has skated 54:03 together and registered a 63.04 CF%, a 68.20 xGF% and a 69.57 HDCF%.
  • At all strengths, Thompson (1.78) and Asplund (1.77) lead the Sabres in individual expected goals and Thompson leads the team in individual corsi for (34).

WELCOME TO BUFFALO
The Sabres have seven new players on their roster this season:

Player, Pos. How Acquired Pronunciation Notes
Craig Anderson, G Free agency AN-duhr-suhn Ranks among the NHL’s active leaders in wins (6th, 291), saves (4th, 18,251) and shutouts (T-6th, 42).
Will Butcher, D Trade (NJD) BUH-chuhr Led all NJD defensemen in assists (92) and ranked second among Devils blueliners in points (106) since entering the NHL in 2017-18.
Robert Hagg, D Trade (PHI) HAG Averaged 15:40 of ice time over 34 games in 2020-21, recording five points (2+3) and leading PHI defensemen with 100 hits.
John Hayden, C Free Agency HAY-dihn Has compiled 31 points (13+18) in 185 career NHL games for CHI, NJD and ARI.
Vinnie Hinostroza, C Free Agency hihn-oh-STROH-za Recorded 12 points (4+8) in 17 games for CHI last season after being acquired via trade from FLA on April 2.
Mark Pysyk, D Free Agency PEH-sihk Played in 125 games for the Sabres from 2012 to 2016 after being selected by Buffalo in the first round (23rd overall) of the 2010 NHL Draft.
Christian Wolanin, D Waivers woh-LA-nihn Claimed off of waivers on Oct. 16; has 18 points (5+13) in 61 career NHL games for Ottawa and Los Angeles.

2021-22 ROSTER NOTES
Of the 23 players on Buffalo’s opening night roster:

  • Eight were drafted by the Sabres — five were first-round selections (Pysyk, 2010; Girgensons, 2012; Mittelstadt, 2017; Dahlin, 2018; Cozens, 2019), one was a second-round pick (Asplund, 2016), one was a fourth-round pick (Bryson, 2017) and one was a seventh-round pick (Olofsson, 2014).
    • Mark Pysyk was drafted by the Sabres in 2010 and returned as an unrestricted free agent in 2021.
  • Seven were acquired in trades: Bjork, Butcher, Hagg, Jokiharju, Miller, Skinner, Thompson
  • Seven were signed as free agents: Anderson, Eakin, Hayden, Hinostroza, Okposo, Ruotsalainen, Tokarski
  • Drake Caggiula was claimed off of waivers.
  • Seventeen played in Buffalo at some point last season: Asplund, Bjork, Bryson, Caggiula, Cozens, Dahlin, Eakin, Girgensons, Jokiharju, Miller, Mittelstadt, Okposo, Olofsson, Ruotsalainen, Skinner, Thompson, Tokarski
  • One played for Buffalo previously: Pysyk
  • Five are new to the Sabres this season: Anderson, Butcher, Hagg, Hayden, Hinostroza

SABRES AMONG LEAGUE-LEADERS (Sabres’ league rankings before 10/24 games)

  • Buffalo Sabres: 7 PTS (T-10th), 3 W (T-8th), 2.00 GA/GP (4th), 29.4 PP% (8th), 85.7% PK% (T-7th), 34.6 S/GP (8th)
  • Girgensons: 1 GWG (T-7th)
  • Skinner: 1 GWG (T-7th)
  • Thompson: 20 SOG (T-10th)
  • Tokarski: .950 SV% (T-6th), 1.40 GAA (5th) 

SABRES REAL-TIME STATS LEADERS
Hits: Hagg (17), Dahlin (10), Caggiula/Miller (8)
Blocked Shots: Hagg (12), Pysyk (8), Dahlin/Miller (5)
Shots: Thompson (20), Okposo (16), Skinner (15)

SABRES’ RECORD IN 10 GAME SEGMENTS [W-L-OTL (PTS), GF/GA, PP, PK] 1-10: 3-1-1 (7), 14/10, 5/17, 12/14

OVERTIME RESULTS (0-0; 126-138 all-time)
Oct. 23 at NJD: L, 2-1 (GWG-Zacha)

SHOOTOUT RESULTS (1-0; 82-74 all-time)
Oct. 16 vs. ARI: W, 2-1 (GDG-Ruotsalainen)

MILESTONES APPROACHING (Player … Needs … Milestone)
Games Played
Zemgus Girgensons … 6 games played … 500 career games played

Assists
Will Butcher … 7 assists … 100 career assists
Rasmus Dahlin … 9 assists … 100 career assists

Points
Mark Pysyk … 8 points … 100 career points

Wins
Craig Anderson … 7 wins … 300 career wins 

RECENT MILESTONES
Kyle Okposo scored his 200th career NHL goal on Oct. 19 vs. Vancouver
Rasmus Dahlin played in his 200th career NHL game on Oct. 19 vs. Vancouver
Colin Miller recorded his 100 career NHL assist on Oct. 22 vs. Boston

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Game Preview: 10/23/21 at New Jersey

Posted on October 23, 2021 by | Leave a comment

GAME-DAY RESOURCES

Game Notes NHL Stats Rosters

LAST GAME
Friday, October 22
Boston 4 at Buffalo 1
Goals: Olofsson
Goalie: Anderson (22 saves/25 shots); 1 ENG
PP: 0/4; PK: 1/1; Shots: Buffalo 36 – Boston 26

CURRENT INJURIES – (Man Games Lost: 15)
Player (injury, first game missed) – total games missed
Mattias Samuelsson (Lower body, Oct. 14; injured reserve) – 4 games
Jack Eichel (Upper body, Oct. 14; injured reserve) – 4 games
Casey Mittelstadt (Upper body Oct. 16; injured reserve) – 3 games
Henri Jokiharju (Lower body Oct. 16; injured reserve) – 3 games
Cody Eakin (Undisclosed) – 1 game

TRANSACTIONS IN PAST 7 DAYS
10/23: Recalled F Brett Murray from Rochester (AHL)

UPCOMING GAMES
Monday, Oct. 25: Tampa Bay at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Thursday, Oct. 28: Buffalo at Anaheim, 10 p.m.
Sunday, Oct. 31: Buffalo at Los Angeles, 4 p.m.
Tuesday, Nov. 2: Buffalo at San Jose, 10:30 p.m.
Thursday, Nov. 4: Buffalo at Seattle, 10 p.m.

TONIGHT’S GAME
SABRES at DEVILS

  • This is the first of three meetings between the Sabres and Devils this season.
  • Last meeting: New Jersey defeated Buffalo 6-3 in Buffalo on April 8, 2021
  • Next meeting: Wednesday, Dec. 29 in Buffalo
  • The Sabres are 6-3-1 in their last 10 games against the Devils; 5-5-0 on the road.
  • This is the 168th game all-time between Buffalo and New Jersey; Buffalo has a 82-58-27 series record.
  • The Sabres are 38-29-15 on the road against the Devils all-time.

THIS DATE IN SABRES HISTORY

  • The Sabres are 11-9-1 all-time on October 23.
  • October 23, 1983: The Sabres top the Winnipeg Jets, 5-2, to earn the 500th win in franchise history.
  • October 23, 1992: Dominik Hasek relieves Daren Puppa to start the third period vs. San Jose and earns his first of 234 wins with the Sabres.

THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW

  • The Sabres have scored at least one power-play goal in nine of their last 10 games against the Devils dating back to the 2019-20 season. The team has gone 13-for-29 (44.8 percent) in those games
  • Rasmus Dahlin has recorded a point in 10 of his 12 career meetings with the Devils. His 13 points against New Jersey represent Dahlin’s highest point total against a single opponent.
  • Victor Olofsson’s six career goals and 10 career points against the Devils are his most against any NHL opponent.
  • Drake Caggiula has three points (2+1) in his last three games against New Jersey.
  • Kyle Okposo has an assist in each of his last three games against the Devils.
  • Mark Pysyk tied his career high with three points (1+2) in his last meeting with New Jersey on Feb. 11, 2020.
  • Colin Miller has a team-high five assists this season and now has eight assists in his last eight games played dating back to last season.

HOT START

  • The Sabres lead the NHL with a 59.25 shot attempts percentage at 5-on-5 this season.
  • Buffalo has 98 scoring chances for and 49 scoring chances against at 5-on-5 through its first four games, good for the NHL lead with a 66.67 scoring chance for percentage.
  • The team’s 63.78 expected goals percentage at 5-on-5 ranks second in the NHL.
  • The Sabres have successfully killed 10 of their 11 penalties to begin the season, ranking fifth in the league with a 90.9 penalty kill percentage this season.

TERRIFIC TRIO

  • The line of Rasmus Asplund, Victor Olofsson and Tage Thompson has accounted for five goals and eight points for the Sabres this season.
  • According to Natural Stat Trick, at 5-on-5, the trio has skated 42:31 together and registered a 66.67 SAT%, a 79.76 xGF% and a 78.95 HDCF%.
  • At all strengths, Thompson (1.71) and Asplund (1.65) lead the Sabres in individual expected goals and Thompson leads the team in individual shot attempts (30).

BACK-TO-BACK
Tonight’s game wraps up Buffalo’s first of 17 sets of back-to-back games this season, which began last night with a 4-1 loss vs. Boston. The Sabres went 4-10-0 in the first game of back-to-back sets and 4-9-1 in the second game in 2020-21. Buffalo’s point breakdown in back-to-back sets last season was: four points (1), three points (1), two points (5), one point (0) and zero points (7).

WELCOME TO BUFFALO
The Sabres have seven new players on their roster this season:

Player, Pos. How Acquired Pronunciation Notes
Craig Anderson, G Free agency AN-duhr-suhn Ranks among the NHL’s active leaders in wins (6th, 291), saves (4th, 18,251) and shutouts (T-6th, 42).
Will Butcher, D Trade (NJD) BUH-chuhr Led all NJD defensemen in assists (92) and ranked second among Devils blueliners in points (106) since entering the NHL in 2017-18.
Robert Hagg, D Trade (PHI) HAG Averaged 15:40 of ice time over 34 games in 2020-21, recording five points (2+3) and leading PHI defensemen with 100 hits.
John Hayden, C Free Agency HAY-dihn Has compiled 31 points (13+18) in 185 career NHL games for CHI, NJD and ARI.
Vinnie Hinostroza, C Free Agency hihn-oh-STROH-za Recorded 12 points (4+8) in 17 games for CHI last season after being acquired via trade from FLA on April 2.
Mark Pysyk, D Free Agency PEH-sihk Played in 125 games for the Sabres from 2012 to 2016 after being selected by Buffalo in the first round (23rd overall) of the 2010 NHL Draft.
Christian Wolanin, D Waivers woh-LA-nihn Claimed off of waivers on Oct. 16; has 18 points (5+13) in 61 career NHL games for Ottawa and Los Angeles.

2021-22 ROSTER NOTES
Of the 23 players on Buffalo’s opening night roster:

  • Eight were drafted by the Sabres — five were first-round selections (Pysyk, 2010; Girgensons, 2012; Mittelstadt, 2017; Dahlin, 2018; Cozens, 2019), one was a second-round pick (Asplund, 2016), one was a fourth-round pick (Bryson, 2017) and one was a seventh-round pick (Olofsson, 2014).
    • Mark Pysyk was drafted by the Sabres in 2010 and returned as an unrestricted free agent in 2021.
  • Seven were acquired in trades: Bjork, Butcher, Hagg, Jokiharju, Miller, Skinner, Thompson
  • Seven were signed as free agents: Anderson, Eakin, Hayden, Hinostroza, Okposo, Ruotsalainen, Tokarski
  • Drake Caggiula was claimed off of waivers.
  • Seventeen played in Buffalo at some point last season: Asplund, Bjork, Bryson, Caggiula, Cozens, Dahlin, Eakin, Girgensons, Jokiharju, Miller, Mittelstadt, Okposo, Olofsson, Ruotsalainen, Skinner, Thompson, Tokarski
  • One played for Buffalo previously: Pysyk
  • Five are new to the Sabres this season: Anderson, Butcher, Hagg, Hayden, Hinostroza

SABRES AMONG LEAGUE-LEADERS (Sabres’ league rankings before 10/23 games)

  • Buffalo Sabres: 6 PTS (T-6th), 3 W (T-4th), 2.00 GA/GP (T-4th), 90.9% PK% (5th), 53.7 % FO% (8th), 37.0 S/GP (4th), 28.0 SA/GP (5th)
  • Anderson: 2 W (T-3rd), .954 SV% (5th), 1.50 GAA (T-9th)
  • Girgensons: 1 GWG (T-5th)
  • Skinner: 1 GWG (T-5th)
  • Thompson: 18 SOG (T-8th)
  • Tokarski: .952 SV% (T-8th), 0.92 GAA (1st) 

SABRES REAL-TIME STATS LEADERS
Hits: Hagg (11), Caggiula/Miller (7), Dahlin (5)
Blocked Shots: Hagg (9), Pysyk (7), Dahlin (4)
Shots: Thompson (18), Okposo (14), Olofsson/Skinner (13)

SABRES’ RECORD IN 10 GAME SEGMENTS [W-L-OTL (PTS), GF/GA, PP, PK] 1-10: 3-1-0 (6), 13/8, 4/15, 10/11

OVERTIME RESULTS (0-0; 126-138 all-time)
N/A

SHOOTOUT RESULTS (1-0; 82-74 all-time)
Oct. 16 vs. ARI: W, 2-1 (GDG-Ruotsalainen)

MILESTONES APPROACHING (Player … Needs … Milestone)
Games Played
Zemgus Girgensons … 7 games played … 500 career games played

Assists
Will Butcher … 7 assists … 100 career assists
Rasmus Dahlin … 9 assists … 100 career assists

Points
Mark Pysyk … 8 points … 100 career points

Wins
Craig Anderson … 7 wins … 300 career wins 

RECENT MILESTONES
Kyle Okposo scored his 200th career NHL goal on Oct. 19 vs. Vancouver
Rasmus Dahlin played in his 200th career NHL game on Oct. 19 vs. Vancouver
Colin Miller recorded his 100 career NHL assist on Oct. 22 vs. Boston

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Game Preview: 10/22/21 vs. Boston

Posted on October 21, 2021 by | Leave a comment

GAME-DAY RESOURCES

Game Notes NHL Stats Rosters

LAST GAME
Tuesday, October 19
Vancouver 2 at Buffalo 5
Goals: Okposo, Girgensons, Skinner, Thompson, Asplund
Goalie: Anderson (32 saves/34 shots)
PP: 0/3; PK: 3/3; Shots: Buffalo 43 – Vancouver 34

CURRENT INJURIES – (Man Games Lost: 10)
Player (injury, first game missed) – total games missed
Mattias Samuelsson (Lower body, Oct. 14; injured reserve) – 3 games
Jack Eichel (Upper body, Oct. 14; injured reserve) – 3 games
Casey Mittelstadt (Upper body Oct. 16) – 2 games
Henri Jokiharju (Lower body Oct. 16; injured reserve) – 2 games
Cody Eakin (Undisclosed) – 0 games

TRANSACTIONS IN PAST 7 DAYS
10/16: Claimed D Christian Wolanin off waivers from Los Angeles; Placed D Henri Jokiharju on IR.

UPCOMING GAMES
Saturday, Oct. 23: Buffalo at New Jersey, 7 p.m.
Monday, Oct. 25: Tampa Bay at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Thursday, Oct. 28: Buffalo at Anaheim, 10 p.m.
Sunday, Oct. 31: Buffalo at Los Angeles, 4 p.m.
Tuesday, Nov. 2: Buffalo at San Jose, 10:30 p.m.

TONIGHT’S GAME
BRUINS at SABRES

  • This is the first of four meetings between the Sabres and Bruins this season.
  • Last meeting: Boston defeated Buffalo 6-2 in Boston on May 1, 2021
  • Next meeting: Wednesday, Nov. 24 in Buffalo
  • The Sabres are 1-8-1 in their last 10 games vs. the Bruins; 2-7-1 at home.
  • This is the 305th game all-time between Buffalo and Boston; Buffalo has a 126-132-46 series record.
  • The Sabres are 75-54-24 at home against the Bruins all-time.

THIS DATE IN SABRES HISTORY

  • The Sabres are 10-8-0 all-time on October 22.
  • October 22, 1972: Gilbert Perreault records six points (2+4) and Rick Martin scores four goals, including three in the third period, as the Sabres defeat the Atlanta Flames 7-2 at Buffalo Memorial Auditorium.
  • October 22, 2011: Brad Boyes plays in his 500th NHL game against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW

  • Buffalo enters tonight’s game looking for a win to go 4-0-0 to start a season for the fourth time in franchise history.
    • The last Sabres team to win at least its first four games of the season was the 2008-09 club that won its first four contests.
  • If the Sabres earn at least a point tonight, they will have opened the season by earning at least a point in their first four games for the seventh time in team history.
  • Colin Miller has four assists this season and now has seven assists in his last seven games played dating back to last season.
  • Arttu Ruotsalainen enters tonight’s game with a point in each of his last four games against Boston (3+1).
  • Rasmus Asplund has an assist in each of his last two games against the Bruins.

HOT START

  • The Sabres have started the season 3-0-0 for the first time since 2008-09.
  • Entering Thursday’s games, the Sabres ranked third in the NHL with a 57.08 shot attempts percentage at 5-on-5 this season.
  • Buffalo has had 62 scoring chances for and 33 scoring chances against at 5-on-5 through its first three games, good for second in the NHL entering play Thursday with a 65.26 scoring chance for percentage.
  • Before Thursday’s games, the team’s 64.63 expected goals percentage at 5-on-5 ranked second in the NHL.
  • The Sabres have successfully killed all nine of their penalties to begin the season. The last time the Sabres were perfect on the penalty kill through at least in the first four games of the season was in 2008-09 when the team opened with five straight games without allowing a power-play goal (24-for-24).

TERRIFIC TRIO

  • The line of Rasmus Asplund, Victor Olofsson and Tage Thompson has accounted for four goals and six points for the Sabres this season.
  • According to Natural Stat Trick, at 5-on-5, the trio has skated 32:13 together and registered a 69.81 SAT%, a 81.17 xGF% and a 86.67 HDCF%.
  • At all strengths, Asplund leads the Sabres in individual expected goals (1.64) and individual high-danger chances for (7), while Olofsson and Thompson are tied for the team lead in individual shot attempts (20).

BACK-TO-BACK
Tonight’s game opens Buffalo’s first of 17 sets of back-to-back games this season, which continues tomorrow night at New Jersey. The Sabres went 4-10-0 in the first game of back-to-back sets and 4-9-1 in the second game in 2020-21. Buffalo’s point breakdown in back-to-back sets last season was: four points (1), three points (1), two points (5), one point (0) and zero points (7).

WELCOME TO BUFFALO
The Sabres have seven new players on their roster this season:

Player, Pos. How Acquired Pronunciation Notes
Craig Anderson, G Free agency AN-duhr-suhn Ranks among the NHL’s active leaders in wins (6th, 291), saves (4th, 18,251) and shutouts (T-6th, 42).
Will Butcher, D Trade (NJD) BUH-chuhr Led all NJD defensemen in assists (92) and ranked second among Devils blueliners in points (106) since entering the NHL in 2017-18.
Robert Hagg, D Trade (PHI) HAG Averaged 15:40 of ice time over 34 games in 2020-21, recording five points (2+3) and leading PHI defensemen with 100 hits.
John Hayden, C Free Agency HAY-dihn Has compiled 31 points (13+18) in 185 career NHL games for CHI, NJD and ARI.
Vinnie Hinostroza, C Free Agency hihn-oh-STROH-za Recorded 12 points (4+8) in 17 games for CHI last season after being acquired via trade from FLA on April 2.
Mark Pysyk, D Free Agency PEH-sihk Played in 125 games for the Sabres from 2012 to 2016 after being selected by Buffalo in the first round (23rd overall) of the 2010 NHL Draft.
Christian Wolanin, D Waivers woh-LA-nihn Claimed off of waivers on Oct. 16; has 18 points (5+13) in 61 career NHL games for Ottawa and Los Angeles.

2021-22 ROSTER NOTES
Of the 23 players on Buffalo’s opening night roster:

  • Eight were drafted by the Sabres — five were first-round selections (Pysyk, 2010; Girgensons, 2012; Mittelstadt, 2017; Dahlin, 2018; Cozens, 2019), one was a second-round pick (Asplund, 2016), one was a fourth-round pick (Bryson, 2017) and one was a seventh-round pick (Olofsson, 2014).
    • Mark Pysyk was drafted by the Sabres in 2010 and returned as an unrestricted free agent in 2021.
  • Seven were acquired in trades: Bjork, Butcher, Hagg, Jokiharju, Miller, Skinner, Thompson
  • Seven were signed as free agents: Anderson, Eakin, Hayden, Hinostroza, Okposo, Ruotsalainen, Tokarski
  • Drake Caggiula was claimed off of waivers.
  • Seventeen played in Buffalo at some point last season: Asplund, Bjork, Bryson, Caggiula, Cozens, Dahlin, Eakin, Girgensons, Jokiharju, Miller, Mittelstadt, Okposo, Olofsson, Ruotsalainen, Skinner, Thompson, Tokarski
  • One played for Buffalo previously: Pysyk
  • Five are new to the Sabres this season: Anderson, Butcher, Hagg, Hayden, Hinostroza

SABRES AMONG LEAGUE-LEADERS (Sabres’ league rankings before 10/21 games)

  • Buffalo Sabres: 6 PTS (T-1st), 3 W (T-1st), 1.33 GA/GP (1st), 34.4% PP% (T-7th), 100.0% PK% (T-1st), 53.7 % FO% (8th), 28.7 SA/GP (T-7th)
  • Anderson: 2 W (T-3rd), .954 SV% (5th), 1.50 GAA (T-9th)
  • Eakin: 1 PPG (T-8th)
  • Girgensons: 1 GWG (T-1st)
  • Okposo: 1 PPG (T-8th)
  • Olofsson: 1 PPG (T-8th), 2 PPP (T-8th)
  • Skinner: 1 GWG (T-1st)
  • Thompson: 1 PPG (T-8th)
  • Tokarski: .952 SV% (T-8th), 0.92 GAA (1st) 

SABRES REAL-TIME STATS LEADERS
Hits: Hagg (9), Miller (6), Caggiula (5)
Blocked Shots: Hagg (9), Pysyk (5), Dahlin/Eakin/Miller (3)
Shots: Olofsson/Thompson (12), Skinner (11), Miller/Okposo (10)

SABRES’ RECORD IN 10 GAME SEGMENTS [W-L-OTL (PTS), GF/GA, PP, PK] 1-10: 3-0-0 (6), 12/4, 4/11, 9/9

OVERTIME RESULTS (0-0; 126-138 all-time)
N/A

SHOOTOUT RESULTS (1-0; 82-74 all-time)
Oct. 16 vs. ARI: W, 2-1 (GDG-Ruotsalainen)

MILESTONES APPROACHING (Player … Needs … Milestone)
Games Played
Zemgus Girgensons … 8 games played … 500 career games played

Assists
Colin Miller … 1 assist … 100 career assists
Will Butcher … 7 assists … 100 career assists
Rasmus Dahlin … 9 assists … 100 career assists

Points
Mark Pysyk … 8 points … 100 career points

Wins
Craig Anderson … 7 wins … 300 career wins 

RECENT MILESTONES
Kyle Okposo scored his 200th career NHL goal on Oct. 19 vs. Vancouver
Rasmus Dahlin played in his 200th career NHL game on Oct. 19 vs. Vancouver

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Game Preview: 10/19/21 vs. Vancouver

Posted on October 18, 2021 by | Leave a comment

GAME-DAY RESOURCES

Game Notes NHL Stats Rosters

LAST GAME
Saturday, October 16
Arizona 1 at Buffalo 2 (OT)
Goals: Eakin, Ruotsalainen (GDG)
Goalie: Tokarski (20 saves/21 shots)
PP: 1/2; PK: 2/2; Shots: Buffalo 33 – Arizona 21

CURRENT INJURIES – (Man Games Lost: 6)
Player (injury, first game missed) – total games missed
Mattias Samuelsson (Lower body, Oct. 14; injured reserve) – 2 games
Jack Eichel (Upper body, Oct. 14; injured reserve) – 2 games
Casey Mittelstadt (Upper body Oct. 16) – 1 game
Henri Jokiharju (Lower body Oct. 16; injured reserve) – 1 game

TRANSACTIONS IN PAST 7 DAYS

10/16: Claimed D Christian Wolanin off of waivers from Los Angeles; Placed D Henri Jokiharju on IR.

UPCOMING GAMES
Friday, Oct. 22: Boston at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 23: Buffalo at New Jersey, 7 p.m.
Monday, Oct. 25: Tampa Bay at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Thursday, Oct. 28: Buffalo at Anaheim, 10 p.m.
Sunday, Oct. 31: Buffalo at Los Angeles, 4 p.m.

TONIGHT’S GAME
CANUCKS at SABRES

  • This is the first of two meetings between the Sabres and Canucks this season.
  • Last meeting: Vancouver defeated Buffalo 6-3 in Buffalo on Jan. 11, 2020
  • Next meeting: Sunday, March 20 in Vancouver
  • The Sabres are 3-6-1 in their last 10 games against the Canucks; 6-4-0 at home.
  • This is the 125th game all-time between Buffalo and Vancouver; Buffalo has a 50-54-20 series record.
  • The Sabres are 32-22-8 at home against the Canucks all-time.

THIS DATE IN SABRES HISTORY

  • The Sabres are 6-8-3 all-time on October 19.
  • October 19, 1978: Don Edwards stops all 19 shots and Craig Ramsay scores the game’s lone goal as the Sabres shut out the Toronto Maple Leafs 1-0 in Buffalo.
  • October 19, 1984: Mike Foligno completes his third career hat trick with the game-winning goal at 12:33 of the third period to dispatch the Quebec Nordiques 5-4 at Buffalo Memorial Auditorium.

THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW

  • Buffalo enters tonight’s game looking for a win to go 3-0-0 to start a season for the fifth time in franchise history.
    • The last Sabres team to win at least its first three games of the season was the 2008-09 club that won its first four contests.
  • If the Sabres earn at least a point tonight, they will have opened the season by earning at least a point in their first three games for the ninth time in team history.
  • Rasmus Dahlin is expected to play in his 200th career NHL game tonight. Among Sabres defensemen with at least 199 career games played for the team, Dahlin ranks 10th in goals per game (.09), fourth in assists per game (.45) and fourth in points per game (.54)
    • Entering Monday’s games, Dahlin’s .45 assists per game ranked 10th among active NHL defensemen (min. 199 GP).
  • Kyle Okposo’s next goal will be the 200th of his NHL career. Entering Monday’s games, there were 55 U.S.-born players who have reached the 200-goal mark and 60 active NHL players who had scored 200 or more career goals.
  • Buffalo has held its opponents to one goal in each of its first two games this season. The last time the team held its opponents to three or fewer goals in the first three games of the season was 2009-10, when the Sabres allowed three goals through their first three contests.
    • The Sabres have held each of their first three opponents to one goal or fewer just once in franchise history: 2008-09, when the team allowed one goal in each of its first three contests.
  • The Sabres have successfully killed all six of their penalties to begin the season. The last time the Sabres were perfect on the penalty kill in the first three games of the season was 2017-18 (11-for-11).
  • Colin Miller notched two assists vs. MTL (10/14) and now has five assists in his last six games played dating back to last season.

HOT AGAINST THE CANUCKS

  • Kyle Okposo has totaled 15 points (4+11) in his last 13 games against Vancouver, including a point in each of the last seven meetings (4+3). His career point-per-game output through 15 games against the Canucks ties his mark against the San Jose Sharks (5+11 in 16 GP) as his best against any NHL team.
  • Vinnie Hinostroza has 10 points (1+9) in 10 career games against Vancouver, including seven assists in his last five. His total points (10) and points per game (1.00) against the Canucks both tie for his best output against any NHL team
  • Rasmus Dahlin has four assists in three career games against the Canucks.
  • Jeff Skinner has recorded six points (3+3) in his last six contests against the Canucks.
  • Zemgus Girgensons has a point in each of his last three games against Vancouver (2+1).
  • Victor Olofsson scored a goal and added an assist in his only career meeting with the Canucks.

WELCOME TO BUFFALO
The Sabres have seven new players on their roster this season:

Player, Pos. How Acquired Pronunciation Notes
Craig Anderson, G Free agency AN-duhr-suhn Ranks among the NHL’s active leaders in wins (6th, 291), saves (4th, 18,251) and shutouts (T-6th, 42).
Will Butcher, D Trade (NJD) BUH-chuhr Led all NJD defensemen in assists (92) and ranked second among Devils blueliners in points (106) since entering the NHL in 2017-18.
Robert Hagg, D Trade (PHI) HAG Averaged 15:40 of ice time over 34 games in 2020-21, recording five points (2+3) and leading PHI defensemen with 100 hits.
John Hayden, C Free Agency HAY-dihn Has compiled 31 points (13+18) in 185 career NHL games for CHI, NJD and ARI.
Vinnie Hinostroza, C Free Agency hihn-oh-STROH-za Recorded 12 points (4+8) in 17 games for CHI last season after being acquired via trade from FLA on April 2.
Mark Pysyk, D Free Agency PEH-sihk Played in 125 games for the Sabres from 2012 to 2016 after being selected by Buffalo in the first round (23rd overall) of the 2010 NHL Draft.
Christian Wolanin, D Waivers woh-LA-nihn Claimed off of waivers on Oct. 16; has 18 points (5+13) in 61 career NHL games for Ottawa and Los Angeles.

2021-22 ROSTER NOTES
Of the 23 players on Buffalo’s opening night roster:

  • Eight were drafted by the Sabres — five were first-round selections (Pysyk, 2010; Girgensons, 2012; Mittelstadt, 2017; Dahlin, 2018; Cozens, 2019), one was a second-round pick (Asplund, 2016), one was a fourth-round pick (Bryson, 2017) and one was a seventh-round pick (Olofsson, 2014).
    • Mark Pysyk was drafted by the Sabres in 2010 and returned as an unrestricted free agent in 2021.
  • Seven were acquired in trades: Bjork, Butcher, Hagg, Jokiharju, Miller, Skinner, Thompson
  • Seven were signed as free agents: Anderson, Eakin, Hayden, Hinostroza, Okposo, Ruotsalainen, Tokarski
  • Drake Caggiula was claimed off of waivers.
  • Seventeen played in Buffalo at some point last season: Asplund, Bjork, Bryson, Caggiula, Cozens, Dahlin, Eakin, Girgensons, Jokiharju, Miller, Mittelstadt, Okposo, Olofsson, Ruotsalainen, Skinner, Thompson, Tokarski
  • One played for Buffalo previously: Pysyk
  • Five are new to the Sabres this season: Anderson, Butcher, Hagg, Hayden, Hinostroza

SABRES AMONG LEAGUE-LEADERS (Sabres’ league rankings before 10/18 games)

  • Buffalo Sabres: 4 PTS (T-2nd), 2 W (T-1st), 1.00 GA/GP (T-1st), 50.0% PP% (T-2nd), 100.0% PK% (T-1st), 54.5 % FO% (5th), 26.0 SA/GP (3rd)
  • Bryson: 2 PPP (T-8th)
  • Eakin: 1 PPG (T-5th)
  • Girgensons: 1 GWG (T-1st)
  • Hagg: 8 BkS (T-2nd)
  • Okposo: 1 PPG (T-5th)
  • Olofsson: 1 PPG (T-5th), 2 PPP (T-8th)
  • Skinner: 2 PPP (T-8th)
  • Thompson: 1 PPG (T-5th) 

SABRES REAL-TIME STATS LEADERS
Hits: Caggiula (4), Dahlin/Hagg/Miller/Pysyk (3)
Blocked Shots: Hagg (8), Pysyk (4), Dahlin/Eakin/Miller (3)
Shots: Olofsson (8), Skinner (7), Miller/Okposo/Thompson (6)

SABRES’ RECORD IN 10 GAME SEGMENTS [W-L-OTL (PTS), GF/GA, PP, PK] 1-10: 2-0-0 (4), 7/2, 4/8, 6/6

OVERTIME RESULTS (0-0; 126-138 all-time)
N/A

SHOOTOUT RESULTS (1-0; 82-74 all-time)
Oct. 16 vs. ARI: W, 2-1 (GDG-Ruotsalainen)

MILESTONES APPROACHING (Player … Needs … Milestone)
Games Played
Rasmus Dahlin … 1 game played … 200 career games played
Zemgus Girgensons … 9 games played … 500 career games played

Goals
Kyle Okposo … 1 goal … 200 career goals

Assists
Colin Miller … 3 assists … 100 career assists
Will Butcher … 8 assists … 100 career assists
Rasmus Dahlin … 10 assists … 100 career assists

Points
Mark Pysyk … 8 points … 100 career points

Wins
Craig Anderson … 8 wins … 300 career wins

RECENT MILESTONES
N/A

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GAME-DAY RESOURCES

Game Notes NHL Stats Rosters

LAST GAME
Thursday, October 14
Montreal 1 at Buffalo 5
Goals: Okposo, Girgensons, Olofsson, Bjork, Thompson
Goalie: Anderson (30 saves/31 shots)
PP: 3/6; PK: 4/4; Shots: Buffalo 36 – Montreal 31

CURRENT INJURIES – (Man Games Lost: 2)
Player (injury, first game missed) – total games missed
Mattias Samuelsson (Lower body, Oct. 14; injured reserve) – 1 game
Jack Eichel (Upper body, Oct. 14; injured reserve) – 1 game
Casey Mittelstadt (Upper body) – 0 games
Henri Jokiharju (Lower body) – 0 games

TRANSACTIONS IN PAST 7 DAYS
10/10: Loaned F Brandon Biro and D Casey Fitzgerald to Rochester (AHL); placed forward Axel Jonsson-Fjallby on waivers
10/11: Recalled D Casey Fitzgerald from Rochester (AHL); Loaned F JJ Peterka and D Casey Fitzgerald to Rochester (AHL).

UPCOMING GAMES
Tuesday, Oct. 19: Vancouver at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Friday, Oct. 22: Boston at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 24: Buffalo at New Jersey, 7 p.m.
Monday, Oct. 25: Tampa Bay at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Thursday, Oct. 28: Buffalo at Anaheim, 10 p.m.

TODAY’S GAME
COYOTES at SABRES

  • This is the first of two meetings between the Sabres and Coyotes this season.
  • Last meeting: Arizona defeated Buffalo 5-2 in Arizona on Feb. 29, 2020
  • Next meeting: Saturday, Jan. 29 in Arizona
  • The Sabres are 6-3-1 in their last 10 games against the Coyotes; 6-2-2 at home.
  • This is the 83rd game all-time between Buffalo and Arizona; Buffalo has a 48-24-10 series record.
  • The Sabres are 26-8-8 at home against the Coyotes all-time.

THIS DATE IN SABRES HISTORY

  • The Sabres are 7-11-3 all-time on October 16.
  • October 16, 1982: Phil Housley records his first NHL goal in a 9-2 win at Washington.
  • October 16, 2009: Tyler Myers scores his first NHL goal and Jason Pominville scores his 100th NHL goal in a 6-3 win at home against the New York Islanders.

THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW

  • Kyle Okposo’s next goal will be the 200th of his NHL career. Entering Friday’s games, there were 55 U.S.-born players who have reached the 200-goal mark and 60 active NHL players who had scored 200 or more career goals.
  • Jeff Skinner has recorded 11 points (6+5) in his last nine games against the Coyotes, including at least a goal in each of his last five games against them.
  • Colin Miller notched two assists vs. MTL (10/14) and now has five assists in his last five games played dating back to last season.
  • Sabres forwards Drake Caggiula (2020-21), John Hayden (2020-21) and Vinnie Hinostroza (2018-2020) all previously played for Arizona. Coyotes forward Johan Larsson (2013-2020) and goaltender Carter Hutton (2018-2021) both played for the Sabres, and Coyotes assistant coach Phil Housley previously played for (1982-1990) and coached (2017-2019) the Sabres.

LAST TIME OUT

  • The Sabres beat the Canadiens 5-1 Thursday night in the team’s home opener. The win matched Buffalo’s largest margin of victory in a season-opening game in franchise history.
    • The Sabres previously notched four-goal wins in three other season openers, most recently on Oct. 10, 2002 vs. NYI.
  • Buffalo went 3-for-6 on the power play with goals from Kyle Okposo, Victor Olofsson and Tage Thompson. Since making his NHL debut on March 28, 2019, Olofsson entered Friday’s games tied for ninth in the league with 21 tallies on the power play.
  • Zemgus Girgensons scored a goal and added an assist for his first multi-point game since Feb. 23, 2020.
  • Colin Miller recorded his first multi-point game (0+2) since Jan. 24 at WSH.

WELCOME TO BUFFALO
The Sabres have six new players on their roster this season:

Player, Pos. How Acquired Pronunciation Notes
Craig Anderson, G Free agency AN-duhr-suhn Ranks among the NHL’s active leaders in wins (6th, 291), saves (4th, 18,251) and shutouts (T-6th, 42).
Will Butcher, D Trade (NJD) BUH-chuhr Led all NJD defensemen in assists (92) and ranked second among Devils blueliners in points (106) since entering the NHL in 2017-18.
Robert Hagg, D Trade (PHI) HAG Averaged 15:40 of ice time over 34 games in 2020-21, recording five points (2+3) and leading PHI defensemen with 100 hits.
John Hayden, C Free Agency HAY-dihn Has compiled 31 points (13+18) in 185 career NHL games for CHI, NJD and ARI.
Vinnie Hinostroza, C Free Agency hihn-oh-STROH-za Recorded 12 points (4+8) in 17 games for CHI last season after being acquired via trade from FLA on April 2.
Mark Pysyk, D Free Agency PEH-sihk Played in 125 games for the Sabres from 2012 to 2016 after being selected by Buffalo in the first round (23rd overall) of the 2010 NHL Draft.

2021-22 ROSTER NOTES
Of the 23 players on Buffalo’s opening night roster:

  • Eight were drafted by the Sabres — five were first-round selections (Pysyk, 2010; Girgensons, 2012; Mittelstadt, 2017; Dahlin, 2018; Cozens, 2019), one was a second-round pick (Asplund, 2016), one was a fourth-round pick (Bryson, 2017) and one was a seventh-round pick (Olofsson, 2014).
    • Mark Pysyk was drafted by the Sabres in 2010 and returned as an unrestricted free agent in 2021.
  • Seven were acquired in trades: Bjork, Butcher, Hagg, Jokiharju, Miller, Skinner, Thompson
  • Seven were signed as free agents: Anderson, Eakin, Hayden, Hinostroza, Okposo, Ruotsalainen, Tokarski
  • Drake Caggiula was claimed off of waivers.
  • Seventeen played in Buffalo at some point last season: Asplund, Bjork, Bryson, Caggiula, Cozens, Dahlin, Eakin, Girgensons, Jokiharju, Miller, Mittelstadt, Okposo, Olofsson, Ruotsalainen, Skinner, Thompson, Tokarski
  • One played for Buffalo previously: Pysyk
  • Five are new to the Sabres this season: Anderson, Butcher, Hagg, Hayden, Hinostroza 

SABRES REAL-TIME STATS LEADERS
Hits: Eakin (2), Miller (2), Bryson/Caggiula/Girgensons/Hagg/Okposo (1)
Blocked Shots: Hagg (6), Dahlin (3), Pysyk (3)
Shots: Olofsson (5), Okposo (5), Eakin/Thompson (4)

SABRES’ RECORD IN 10 GAME SEGMENTS [W-L-OTL (PTS), GF/GA, PP, PK] 1-10: 1-0-0 (2), 5/1, 3/6, 4/4

OVERTIME RESULTS (0-0; 126-138 all-time)
N/A

SHOOTOUT RESULTS (0-0; 81-74 all-time)
N/A

MILESTONES APPROACHING (Player … Needs … Milestone)
Games Played
Rasmus Dahlin … 2 games played … 200 career games played
Zemgus Girgensons … 10 games played … 500 career games played

Goals
Kyle Okposo … 1 goal … 200 career goals

Assists
Colin Miller … 3 assists … 100 career assists
Will Butcher … 8 assists … 100 career assists
Rasmus Dahlin … 11 assists … 100 career assists

Points
Mark Pysyk … 8 points … 100 career points

Wins
Craig Anderson … 8 wins … 300 career wins

RECENT MILESTONES
N/A

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